


We're getting löw(e)

by kopfkino, ThunderFrost2012



Category: Football RPF, Real Person Fiction, Sports RPF
Genre: Arpoador, Botanic Garden, Brazil, Christ Redemptor, Comedy, Copacabana Beach, Crack, Established Relationship, FIFA World Cup 2014, Fluff, Free day, M/M, Marco is sort of TripAdvisor-addicted, Mats is always a tease, Mesut likes impressing Sami, Miro loves taking tons of pictures, Multi, Philipp loves nature and adventures, Pão de Açúcar, Rio de Janeiro, Surprises, There's something Basti is very afraid of, Tijuca National Park forest, Zoo, and an endless mountain of crack, and crack again, but also a lot of fluff, crack and fluff, date, lots of crack, told you this was crack, tourism activities, you have no idea how much crack this is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-20
Updated: 2016-06-15
Packaged: 2018-03-13 20:54:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3396011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kopfkino/pseuds/kopfkino, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThunderFrost2012/pseuds/ThunderFrost2012
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happens when die Mannschaft get an entire day to relax? Just give it a try and get ready for the consequences! Brazil has so much fun to offer to these dedicated professionals and craziness is guaranteed!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter I

“ _What?”_ Philipp frowns and he’s not the only one.

“You heard me. Yesterday, the match against Algeria put you under such a pressure that the only way to get good results at training is to give you a free day before!” The coach explains.

“A fully free day? Without even a single session of training? Are you serious?” Mario asks for confirmations.

“Yes, are you deaf or what? Now get out of my way, before I change my mind!” Joachim grumbles and all the footballers disappear from his sight.

 

 

“We’re going to spend this day together, aren’t we?” Thomas asks Miro, grabbing his hand.

“Sure, if you have nothing better to do, you know, younger activities, maybe with.. I don’t know, Mats, Benni, Mario, or Marco…”

“For what? To be the third wheel all day long? No way, I’m stuck with you, Opa! So if you want to go somewhere playing Bingo or to feed the pigeons on a bench in the park, I’m fine with that!” The young striker makes fun of him.

“Ha-ha, very funny!” Miro rolls his eyes. “I’m not that old, I’m going to show you!” He adds, searching for the brochures of the activities suggested by the hotel.

 

 

Mats leans his head on Benni’s shoulder, who’s sitting next to him.

“So what are _we_ doing?” He grins out suggestively.

“Uh, maybe we could go tour the city with Mesut and Sami? They’ve been talking about doing it since we got into this whole Brazil affair. I think they’re planning on visiting pretty monuments? That would be so interesting, imagine the culture…”

The blond stops at the glare from his partner.

“I was thinking something more… _intimate_ …” He suggests with a sexy tone.

“Calm down, boy.”

“Fine… But I still want to go somewhere awesome, not boring MesutandSami style.”

Benni wants to reply but he’s cut off by Mats who shouts with his eyes wide open.

“THE BEACH, I know! Let’s go to the beach, maybe we can even learn how to surf. That’d be awesome”

Mats gets up and runs away before Benni can stop him. He sighs. After all, what can possibly go wrong?

 

 

Sami and Mesut find their way to the back in synchronization before Jogi can ever say a word.

“You’ve got all the hotel brochures?” Mesut throws, quickly.

Sami rolls his eyes on him and nods. “They’re in my room, but we should really go first to Cristo Redemptor, it’s one of the 7 wonders of the world, and it’d be such a nice outing! We haven’t had the chance to visit yet.” 

Mesut nods. “We should also pack a picnic and eat it while we’re out.”

“But don’t you want to try exotic Brazilian food?”  Sami laughs.

“Well, maybe we can do both? Bring food and try out new things…I just have one condition.”

Sami waits for Mesut to continue.

“You have to try it with me.”

Sami smiles and brings his boyfriend close enough for their lips to touch,

“You’re adorable.”

But alas, they’re interrupted as Mats rushes through them and pushes them aside.

“Waves and surfing, HERE I COME!”

 

“Okay, Fips, first we have a huge breakfast and then we can do whatever you want!” Manuel says to his partner, while he eagerly reaches the breakfast room.

“Actually, considering what I’m planning, a huge breakfast wouldn’t help and mostly you should avoid _this_!” Philipp points out, snatching from his hands the jar of Nutella.

“What the hell are you doing?” Manuel snaps, trying to get it back, but Philipp is faster and asks the first available waiter to take it as far as possible.

“Philipp, it’s not that being my boyfriend automatically makes you immune to my…. compulsive fury!” Manuel roars.

“I have a very good reason for doing what I did!” Philipp justifies.

And then it happens. Manuel’s pissed off expression turns into a huge grin and the older has no idea of what’s going around.

“I got it; don’t add a single word more. You’re going to take me to the Nutella warehouse!” Manuel figures out, as thrilled as a child.

“What? For God’s sake, no! First, there’s no Nutella warehouse here, it’s imported! The warehouse is in Italy.” The captain reminds him.

“So, once we’re back home, will you take me to Italy? Oh, wait, that’s even better. Let’s make a trip there on Valentine’s Day, it would be soooo romantic!” Manuel already daydreams.

“No! A million of no! Not even over my dead body!” Philipp protests lively.

“No on Valentine’s day or no… at all?” Manuel pushes his luck.

His only answer, Philipp gives out an unintelligible groan of frustration.

“Okay, I won’t insist, but I’m still crossed at you!” Manuel retorts.

“The only reason why I took that junk food away from you is because I don’t want you to puke all day long during our trip. So now we’ll have a healthy and nutrient breakfast and you’ll thank me for that later.” Philipp asserts.

“Thank you?! Right now you are on my black list; I’m not going to forgive you that easily!” Manu swears.

“Oh, you will, as soon as you see where I’m going to take you.” Philipp smirks with self confidence.

 

 

“Alright, Marco! It seems that I’m yours all day long!” Mario cheers, walking his boyfriend towards the breakfast table. “What would you like to do? I don’t want you to tire too much… so if you prefer we can even stay here, in the hotel, quiet and…”

“Mario, please, stop treating me like a sort of war invalid!” Marco rolls his eyes.

“Well, you fought hard for your beloved Nation and you got injured for that. So, in a certain sense, you are one.”  Mario smirks at him.

“If I am, then you are my medal of honor.” The older murmurs, pulling the younger closer for a sweet, little kiss.

“However, really, I can move from here. I’ll tell you more. After the operation, the doctor said that I have to take long walks, as often as I can.” Marco explains.

“Well, he surely didn’t suggest you to take intercontinental flights!” Mario makes him notice, but he’s amused, Marco is such a stubborn guy and he always does what he wants.

“Well, it’s my choice where I want to take said long walks!” The elder chuckles.  “Don’t tell me it wasn’t a nice surprise.”

“It was the most beautiful surprise ever. When on Sunday you sent  me that selfie at the airport in Rio, I was sure you were making a joke with Photoshop;  instead you are here for real!” Mario grins. “And you’ve already brought us good luck, yesterday we won!” He adds, caressing his face.

“Yeah, and you must keep winning until that World cup is yours!” Marco urges him.

“ _Ours_.” Mario corrects him, holding his hand. “Field or not, you’re part of that. And everyone else thinks so.” He assures his lover, making him smile.

 

 

“And then I was thinking that we could go to…” Lukas suggests, but stops when he figures out that everyone is looking at him and Bastian with clear diffidence.

“What?” Bastian snorts, glaring at everyone.

They’re ruining his precious time with Lukas, after all.

“It’s useless that you pretend to examine those brochures. We know that you two are planning something!” Toni speaks for everyone.

“Such as?” Lukas raises his eyebrow.

“I don’t know! I just have the feeling you’re up to something, but I don’t know what, if I did I would know how to avoid it, don’t you think so?” Toni clarifies.

“Yeah, of course, because you’re sure that we have nothing better to do than trying to ruin this free day to each of you.” Bastian grumbles, without even raising his gaze from the brochures.

“Do you really think that we have time to spy on every group, following them to their trip and then invent some prank? All day long? Oh, c’mon, guys, the world doesn’t spin around you!” Lukas states.

“So, aren’t you going to spoil our fun?” Jerome asks for confirmation.

“Nope, it’s not on our things-to-do list, for once, you’re safe.” Bastian assures, but everyone keeps staring at them in pure disbelief.

“For God’s sake! If you don’t believe us, I swear we’re going to set up the king of all pranks, to teach you a lesson!” Lukas snaps and this is convincing enough to make the others trust their word and leave them alone.

“So, honey, as I was saying, firstly I want to go to Copacabana beach…” Lukas pleads.

“I couldn’t agree more, if you want we can even spend the whole day there.” Bastian beams.

“No way, I also want to visit the zoo!” Lukas protests.

Bastian frowns.

“What?”

“The zoo! You know.. tigers, giraffes, monkeys, lions…”

“Geez, Poldi, I do know what a zoo is, just why do you want to go there? How old are you? Five years old?” The blond protests.

“Because I love animals, I love nature and we have a free day to do also that. What, don’t you agree?” The younger pouts.

“I guess I can’t deny you anything, baby!” Bastian gives in.

* * *

 

“I still don’t get it, why do we have to wear comfortable clothes and trekking shoes?” Manuel grumbles as they wait for their taxi. “However, I like what I see.” He adds, staring approvingly at Philipp, who wears light brown Bermuda and matching shirt with a red foulard around his neck.

He looks like a boy scout, a really cute boy scout.

“You’ll see.” Philipp smirks. “So, Manu, are you ready for some wild adventure?”

“NO! I’m just hungry!” The goalkeeper grumbles.

“Oh, c’mon, you even ate three slices of bread…” The Captain makes him notice.

“Yeah, but with honey! Honey, for God’s sake! What did you mistake me for? A damn bear?” He snaps.

“Actually, everyone says that you remind more of a duck!” Philipp chuckles.

“Fips…” Manuel resorts to his warning tone.

“Oh, look, the car is arriving!” The older changes topic with nonchalance.

The ride doesn’t last for long and soon they reach the location Philipp selected: the Tijuca National Park forest.

“Wow, Fips! This is just… wow!” Manuel states in awe, taking a look around as they walk. “Wait, is it a real water fall?” He wonders, pointing at a spot still a bit far from them.

“Yep, it is, can’t wait to see it closer. Let’s go!” The Captain urges him.

“Yeah, sure, but… wait a minute. Shouldn’t we wait for the guide before?” The goalkeeper makes him notice.

“There’s no guide. We’re here on our own. Now let’s go.”  Philipp informs him.

Manuel’s eyes become so wide he could almost lose his irises.

“What? No guide? Are you nuts? We’ll never get out from here alive!” He squeaks.

“Don’t panic! I know everything about woods, forests and I’ve got brilliant spatial orientation skills. Finally, all the Junior Woodchucks guidebooks I’ve read come to use!” Philipp asserts, thrilled.

“What? Do you really think that I should feel reassured by that? Fips, we’re going to get lost and spend the whole night here… if we survive to the day, that’s it.” The taller protests, very concerned.

“Uhmm… why not? It would be so nice to spend the night here. Just you and me and the beauty of the nature.” Philipp murmurs, kissing him.

 

Manuel loses himself into the kiss for a while, before recalling the situation.

“No, Philipp, let’s try not to get lost. Let’s come back until we’re still in time for that.” The goalkeeper protests, parting from him.

“Geez, Manuel, I was just joking. We won’t get lost. I’ve studied the path very well. Trust me.” The Captain insists.

“No way! If you want to get lost in the forest, do it on your own, dear my Grand Mogol! Oh, well… _Little_ Mogol!” Manuel teases him.

“You, idiot!” Philipp sighs, showing him his middle finger, playfully. “Okay, if you want to stay here, stay here; but don’t complain if, where I’m back, the wolves will have already torn you to pieces!” Philipp warns him, before leaving.

“The _wolves_?” Manuel repeats to himself, terrified.

“Fiiiiiiiiiiiips, waaaaaaaait!” He yells from afar, running towards his partner.

Philipp smirks to himself.

Just like every proper Captain, he knows infallible strategies.

“So, have you changed your mind, honey?” He turns to his boyfriend, pretending to be stunned and the other nods.

“Alright, Manu, it’s going to be wonderful. We’ll see so many beautiful things, places, maybe even animals and…”

“Yeah, right, whatever. Just try not to walk too fast and, please, hold my hand through the entire trip.” The goalkeeper requests.

“Sure, I can. Aww, you want to hold my hand, it’s so romantic!” The Captain beams.

“It’s not for that, it’s just that I don’t want to fall!” Manuel strikes back.

“What?” Philipp frowns.

“Oh, c’mon. Here the ground is so slippery and steep… it’s not an easy walk!” The younger points out.

The older bursts out laughing.

“Oh, Jesus! I can’t believe my ears. The mighty sweeper keeper who always dives everywhere so fearlessly… is afraid to fall!”

“Hey! It’s something totally different. Filed is level, plain and… still. I don’t have to mind where I put my foot, contrary to… here!” The goalkeeper justifies.

“I didn’t know about it. Sorry.” Philipp sincerely apologizies.

“Now you do. Please, don’t tell Jogi or Pep about this. After all, I seriously doubt that I’ll ever have to train in a place like this!” Manu says. “On second thought, don’t tell anything to anyone. Ever.” He pleads.

“Don’t worry, baby. Your secret is safe with me.” Philipp promises, caressing his face.

Manuel thanks him with a deep and tender kiss.

“So this trip must be horrible to you. I shouldn’t’ have ever brought you here.” Philipp grumbles, biting his lower lip.

“I’m glad to be here, Fips. If I am with you, every trip is wonderful.” The younger smiles at him.

Philipp shows him his biggest grin, kissing him again.

“Okay, so let’s go to see the water fall, if you don’t want to be stuck here after sunset!” The older suggests, eager to enjoy their free day together.

“Sure, but don’t go too fast, okay?” The younger protests.

Philipp smiles at his mate, holding his hand.

“Don’t worry, baby. I got you.”

 

* * *

 

 

"Benni! Look at me!" The blond boy turns to find a familiar face running towards him with a surfboard between his arms. "Come on! Don't you want to join me?" 

"Isn't that kinda dangerous?" He frowns, which makes Mats roll his eyes on him. 

"It's  _surf,_ if it was that dangerous it wouldn't be a sport." 

Used to his boyfriend's replies, Benedikt sits down on the towel he had laid down earlier and takes out a book out of the bag. "Whatever, I'll just sunbathe for a bit." 

As soon as his back hit the ground, he closes his eyes feeling the warm Brazilian sun on his face. Hopefully the sunscreen will keep him from a burn. He opens his book at the page he stopped earlier. Suddenly, the warmth from the sun fades. 

"Are you a horse?"

"What kind of question is that? I'm not Thomas." Benni creeps one eye from his book to find Mats with a suggestive look on his face. 

"That's too bad... Can I still ride you anyway later?"

The book falls from his hands to his chest in shock as Mats laughs walking away to the sea.

"What a tease" He smiles.

The water here has a more greenish tint, and the view is beautiful. The beach's name is Arpoador. He watches as Mats gets in it. Benedikt doesn't need a mirror to know his cheeks are still blushed, and shirtless Mats in the water doesn't exactly help either. 

It is a wonderful day, though, and Benni's happy about it. They deserve the rest after that long match against Algeria. The sight of Mats trying to jump on the surf board amuses him to no end. 

Benedikt gets on his feet and walks down the ocean, he finds the water warm enough, which well, compared to Germany's type of beaches, anything is warm. The water is clear enough he can see his own feet through it. He smiles as he turns to find Mats trying to conquer another wave, only to fall on his back. 

But when Mats doesn't swim up from the water, Benni starts to panic. He jumps to his spot without giving it a second thought. The water here is deeper, it takes much longer to swim to where Mats is. He could try to scream for his name, but with all the water, it makes it impossible. Mats is lucky I'm a gifted swimmer, he lets himself think. 

He dives underwater searching for Mats. Nowhere to be found, he's starting to run out of air, so he pushes his body to the top. To his surprise, he's there, floating on the surf board. 

"MaaA-" He tries calling him before water finds its way to his mouth. He swims to the board and drags it towards the shore.

The waves are kind and soft, and they gently push the pair to the pale colored sand. Benni opens his eyes to find Mats' head buried on the board. 

"Not dangerous huh?" He adds with an imitation tone, but when Mats doesn't move, his laughter fades.

"Mats?" 

Getting up and moving closer, he taps on his back. "Mats." 

No reply. Benni thoughts go to the worse possible place, what if he had drowned? No. There was no way. "Mats!" He tries again, louder.

He grabs his boyfriend's back and rolls it over to find his face drawn with a huge grin. The moment Benni lets him go, the man gives in and starts laughing hysterically. 

"You're too cute for your own good," He tries to say between laugh and laugh. 

"You were faking it?" Benni's face is serious, clearly not understanding what's going on. 

"Well, yea-" 

"I can't believe you! I thought you _fucking_ ...died!" Benedikt yells at him, not even taking a moment to listen.

"It was a joke, ever heard of trolling?" Mats shrugs, before starting to laugh again. 

He was waiting for a reply, but before he could hear it, Benni gets up and storms off: clearly angry. 

Mats sighs as he watches his beloved walk away, he really needed to work on which jokes to tell and which ones to avoid. 

 

Benedikt tries to focus on his book but he can't. He sighs as he reads the same line for the third time. 

"Benni.." 

He feels Mats sit down next to him. He ignores him and keeps his head in his book.

"I said I'm sorryyyy" He whines as Benni tries to read his sentence for the fourth time, without any success. "I just couldn't help it, and we're at the beach, can't you let it go?"

Benni turns his head to Mats. He has a honest worried look on his face. He sighs, he hates that he can't be mad for too long. But he's not going to make it that easy for him. He turns his head back into his book. 

"What if I surprise you?" Mats tries again.

Benedikt raises an eyebrow. "You're kind of predictable."

Mats smiles. He grabs Benni's hand and pulls him from his spot. "Mats" He starts to complain at the speed his hand is being pulled but before he can continue, they stop in front of the water. 

"So, what now?" He asks him. Mats doesn't reply and looks down. 

Benni follows him to find sand, but to his surprise, there's something written. He makes out the initials

_**B + M** _

"What-" 

Around it, there's a badly drawn circle and what seems to be the letter H with a weird sign on the upper right corner. 

"It says squared H... you know, 'cause we're Hummels and Höwedes, and Benni and Mats." Mats tries to explain. "I read somewhere on a Brazilian magazine that if you put your soulmate's name on the sand with yours on this beach, you'll be together forever."

Benni can feel his cheeks turning pink again. He can't believe Mats did this. "I'm really sorry Benni, I didn't mean to make you mad." 

"And what's with the circle?" He adds, trying not to burst into a smile.

"It's a  _heart_." Mats replies half offended. 

He can't help himself, and he jumps to Mats and puts his face on his. They lips meet for a moment before Mats folds his arms around Benni. 

"I'll take that as we're okay?"

Benedikt smiles at him, before Mats points his finger to the horizon. The sun is setting down and everyone's gathering around to watch it. 

"I'm glad you're here with me." The blond speaks up, as they both watch the beautiful sunset before them, and he means it. He really does. 

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More dates... more crack!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Thank you so much by Andrea and me for your lovely support.  
> Keep it coming :)  
> Hope you'll have fun with this second part, too :)

“Oh my god, it’s beautiful here. You couldn’t have chosen a better place!” Mario states ecstatic, while he leans to the barrier and enjoy the amazing view of the town from the first mount of Pão de Açúcar.  
“Yeah, I have read very positive reviews about this place and... they didn’t lie!” Marco smiles, sliding closer to his boyfriend.  
“You know, it was worth it even the almost two hours of row to get here.” Mario says, while he sets better his baseball cap on his head.  
“It would have been worth it even after four hours of row.” Marco strikes back.  
  
“Well, we surely didn’t get bored, with all those fans around. I guess it’s only your fault. You can wear dark sunglasses, but it’s useless if you don’t hide your impossible hair!” Mario giggles.  
Behind his large, black sunglasses, Marco raises his eyebrow, in disbelief.  
  
“Impossible hair?” He repeats.  
“Impossibly beautiful hair!” The younger corrects himself, ruffling his bright blond hair.  
  
“That’s better now. Oh well, I guess it’s also your fault. Those chubby cheeks are impossible to hide and they draw everyone’s attention.” Marco strikes back, affectionately pinching the cheeks in questions. “And I’m so jealous. They’re _my_ chubby cheeks to kiss and play with!” He adds, kissing the left one.  
“Only my cheeks?” Mario pouts.  
  
“Considering that we are here, in a public place, surrounded by tons of people… yes, Mario, only your cheeks!” Marco replies. “But once we’re back in our room, I’m going to show you all the other parts of your body that drive me crazy.” He adds in a whisper, winking at him.  
  
“So what are we waiting for? Let’s go back!” Mario suggests, lustfully.  
“No way! I didn’t spend two hours of row to stay here less than half an hour!” Marco lively protests. “This is only the beginning; there are still lots of things to do. If we take a walk along that path, if we’re lucky enough we could even meet some lovely monkeys, according to what Trip Advisor says.” He explains.  
“Really? Cool! I like monkeys.” Mario grins.  
“I do as well, they remind me of you, my little crazy monkey!” Marco chuckles, pinching his cheeks once more.  
  
“Besides, if we find a spot which is isolated enough, we can pretend to be back in our hotel room.” The elder mischievously winks at him.  
The younger goggles his eyes in surprise.  
“Wooow! You mean that you really want to…?”  
“Nooo! I mean, yes, but only in the proper limits!” Marco squeaks. “I mean, not the whole bedroom stuff, only some kisses and cuddling.” He points out.  
“Oh, alright, then. Otherwise we would shock those poor little monkeys for life!” Mario chuckles.  
  
“Exactly. We’re going to give them only a Teen-Up rating show.” Marco approves. “But before starting the walk, we should get something for lunch.” He suggests.  
“You’re right. What about hotdogs, French fries and donuts?” Mario hazards.  
“Yeah, sure, then Jogi will ask for my head on a silver plate if I don’t make you respect your healthy diet!” Marco strikes back, amused when he hears the younger snorting.  
  
Mario can be so childish sometimes!  
  
“I’ll tell you what. There’s a wonderful kiosk of fruit around here and…”  
  
Mario grimaces in disgust.  
  
“Fruit?!”  
  
“It’s not common fruit. It’s the best fruit Brazil can offer. Everyone on Trip Advisor suggests to try that!” Marco insists.  
“Everyone on bloody Trip Advisor can fuck off! I’m not going to eat fruit only because a stranger on the web told me so. For what we know about it, it could be the owner of the kiosk himself who invented a fake account to spam his bloody fruit stuff!” Mario snaps.  
  
“Okay, it seems that I touched a raw nerve!” Marco rolls his eyes. “Okay, baby, you’re not going to eat fruit because a random stranger told you so.” he states, making his boyfriend grin.  
“But what if I asked you so? Pretty please?” The older adds, making puppy eyes.  
  
He perfectly knows that Mario is helpless in front of them.  
  
“Damn you! Let’s go buying your stupid fruit!” The younger grumbles.  
“C’mon, Sunny, I said ‘fruit’, not ‘poison’!” The elder giggles.  
  
He just loves when Mario acts like a spoiled kid.  
  
“It’s the same to me!” The Bayern Munich player strikes back.  
“You’re exaggerating!” The Borussia Dortmund player shrugs.  
  
“No, it’s you who sometimes remind me more of my personal nutritionist than my boyfriend!” Mario accuses him.  
Marco grabs his shoulders and pulls him closer.  
“Oh, really? So do you think that your nutritionist would do _this_?” He says, before kissing him.  
  
Okay, Mario is wearing a baseball cap and Marco is wearing sunglasses, but it’s still something rather dangerous to do.  
And Mario really appreciates that.  
Lucky for them, no one crosses their way close enough to notice that couple.  
  
“Wow! Well, I guess you proved your point.” Mario says satisfied, passing a thumb on his lips.  
  
Marco lets out a small laughter.  
“What?” The younger frowns.  
“Nothing. For a moment I asked myself how things would be if your boyfriend was Manuel, instead of me, so I pictured you two in a living Realm of Nutella, candies, French fries, ice cream, snacks and any other kind of junk food!” He explains.  
  
“Geez, the worst thing is that I’m afraid that no one would ever prevent the other from eating that stuff.” Mario admits.  
“Yeah, you would be the most unhealthy pairing who has ever walked through this Planet.” Marco makes fun of him.  
  
“Hey! At least we’d surely be happier than you and Fips together. I can already picture your life ... all around football, fitness and health care. Probably the yummiest thing you allowed yourselves would be a yogurt with cookies inside or... a soy ice-cream!” Mario strikes back.  
“Well, if Manu is so fond of him, probably Philipp is not the icy dictator we think he is, maybe he hides a funnier side...” Marco asserts, but then he notices how Mario is glaring at him.  
“Which is none of my business, of course. I guess that our pairings are sorted out perfectly the way they are.” He immediately adds, making Mario smile.  
  
“That’s better. Okay, let’s go buying your beloved fruit.” He gives in.  
They reach the kiosk and they wait for the row to diminish.  
  
“Can you see how many people are here? This is very requested fruit, you’re going to thank me for that.” Marco says.  
“Yeah, sure!” Mario grunts, rolling his eyes. “You know what? I eat whatever I want and I’m always alright... while your ankles are so damn weak... haven’t you ever thought that maybe you don’t put enough carbohydrates and sugar in them?” Mario hints.  
  
“Okay, I got the bloody message. Once we’re done buying the fruit, we can by a donut, one for each of us.” Marco surrenders.  
“These are the words I like to hear!” Mario rejoices. “So this means that I’ll have a treat to enjoy during sunset.”  
  
“Does it mean that we’re going to stay here until sunset?” Marco asks him, thankfulness making his eyes shine even more than his hair.  
  
“One of the most beautiful sunsets in the world, in one of the most beautiful places in the world, with the person I love the most in the world? I wouldn’t ever miss that!” Mario smiles at him, squeezing his hand and Marco melts down like snow in the sun.  
“Oh, Sunny, you’re sweeter than donuts!”  
   
*********************************  
  
Mesut walks up the stairs.  
“Mes, slow down! You’re not supposed to run on automatic stairs!” Sami complains, but he can’t help it. They arrive to the top and their eyes widen more. “Wow, it’s amazing.”  
  
Before them, the Christ Redemptor is touching the sky with its arms wide open.  
  
“It’s a catholic monument.” He wants to impress Sami with his knowledge, he’s not sure why.  
“I figured, it is the Christ, after all.”  
  
“Well did you know the entire idea of a statue in Brazil of Jesus Christ as a significant religious monument originated in the 1850s by eh.. a Catholic priest but the idea didn’t progress at the time because this Princess Isabel rejected it.”  
  
Sami turns to Mesut who ignores the stunned look on his face.  
  
“The idea was resurrected after though, and funds were collected to begin construction. The idea of showing Christ with open arms is an image which shows peace, and is also in the shape of a cross.”  
“You impress me sometimes Özil.”  
  
The sun is warm and Sami puts on his eye glasses. He turns to Mesut who’s attention has already drifted from the statue.  
  
“Isn’t that the Maracana stadium?”  
The beautiful white stadium can be seen from where they’re standing along with most of Rio de Janeiro.  
  
“It’s where the final game for the cup will be played.” Sami remembers.  
“I’m gonna win that cup just for you.” Mesut turns with a wink.  
“You’re such a romantic” He teases him back, which only makes Mesut blush softly. But he means it, he’s determined to make Sami happy and bring the cup home. He deserves it, the entire team does.  
  
The view from the spot is breathtaking and they both admire it in silence for a couple of minutes.  
  
“I’m starving.” Sami suggests as he grips the backpack on Mesut’s back. “Wanna stop for a while?”  
Mesut agrees and they walk down to the little tables down the statue. Mesut gets a soda as soon as they arrive.  
“I didn’t realize I was so thirsty.” He admits as Sami opens the sandwich they both packed before coming.  
  
“We should check out more of the Tijuca Jungle too! There’s a lot more to see than the Christ.”  
Mesut nods with a smile. He loves his boyfriend’s ideas to always try new things.  
“What is there to do?”  
“I think they have a thing called Fairy Lake. I heard a woman mentioning it in Spanish earlier. Wanna go check it out?”  
  
They both agree and as soon as they finish, they rush down the path. The rainforest is humid and with the heat, they find themselves choking with the heat. At least it would help for the games, right?  
After a couple of hours, Mesut’s getting tired, yet, he doesn’t want to stop Sami from the adventure, he seems so much into it. He decides to hold on more for his sake. If Sami’s happy, so is he.  
   
“Mesut…” Sami starts, they’ve decided to sit down for a moment to catch their breath.  
“Yeah?”  
“It’s kinda warm.. Isn’t it?” He hesitates.  
A wave of comfort surrounds Mesut.  
“I’m tired too, Sami, let’s go home.”  
  
They both smile and get up, walking back where they came from… except they’re not sure if they had taken right or left earlier.  
“I think it’s this way.” Sami nods and Mesut has no choice but to follow him.  
   
“How come we didn’t follow the crowd?” Mesut complains, the heat starting to get on his nerves.  
“Well, because they would have asked for autographs.” Sami explains even if Mesut knows exactly why. “At least they don’t have bears here.”   
“How come we can’t _find_ the crowd?!” He adds with an annoyed tone.  
  
Sami sighs, they’ve been walking down the forest for what seems an eternity now and their phone signal is dead. How they’re ever going to get out of this one is beyond him. Maybe they could turn into natives and live here away from the media. Though Philipp would probably disagree.  
“I guess we’re not in the touristic path anymore?”  Sami continues.  
Mesut sighs, but before he can continue complaining, he stops at the sight of an animal. He quickly grabs Sami’s shoulder to stop him too.  
“What?”  
  
Mesut points ahead to the black with yellow stains snake moving around the tree. His heart beat must have increased exponentially. He feels Sami’s hand on his waist.  
“Calm down, it’s a chicken snake. It’s not dangerous.” He whispers.  
He looks at Sami who has a comforting smile. “It’s okay.” He feels his body tense down.  
“Let’s get out of here.” He begs.  
   
After a few hours, they see a house. Mesut is the first one to find the energy to rush. He’s sick of the forest.  
He opens the doors to find a restaurant. It’s empty. He wants to curse until he spots an old woman comes out to the counter.  
She mumbles a soft language which can only be Portuguese, and Mesut completely remembers the country he finds himself.  
He can only guess Spanish is closer to Portuguese than German or English, right?  
  
“ _We are lost.”_ He tries to remember the few words he learnt from his time at Real Madrid.  
The woman is clearly confused. Maybe he worded it wrong? He wasn’t the best at languages.  
“Lost!” He tries in english, ever since he’s at Arsenal, his English is better.  Maybe German would be better?  
  
The lady however, still has a blank expression on her face. He hears Sami walking in. He’s calmer than Mesut at the moment and has a better idea; he does signs with his hands to Mesut and back at him and then he’s imitating a phone. The lady smiles and nods before handing a small phone. Sami turns to Mesut and gives him a wink.  
“Unbelievable.” Mesut rolls his eyes.  
  
“I know I am, but that’s why you love me.”  Sami snaps back, and Mesut can’t think of a reply because he’s right. He is terribly in love with him.  
  
They end up following the track back to civilization. A taxi is ready to take them home.  
“I can’t believe we got lost.” Sami points out as they walk to the car.  
“Mats is never going to let this go.” Mesut agrees.  
“At least there’s no one else I’d rather get lost with.” Sami pulls Mesut closer who blushes.  
  
“We’re in public!” Mesut hisses loud enough for only him to listen.  
“I can’t wait to get home then.” Sami winks, “You know, where things can get more intimate.”  
Mesut has to bite his lip as Sami gets into the car. He rolls his eyes and follows him. Who knows what the others might have done during their free day.  
  
TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some Kloller, some Schweinski and giving crack an entire new meaning!  
> sdgjsdoif  
> Bye for now from Andrea and me ^^
> 
> Lu


	3. Chapter III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More dates, and a certain pair brings some fun!

It’s exactly what Miro imagined it would look like. His grip tightens on his camera.

Beautiful trees touch the light blue sky above him; the heat passing through leafs with a soft wind leaving whispers. It’s easy to forget all the stress from the World Cup in this place. Miroslav wants to win the cup, it means everything to him. Everything is extremely peaceful at the Botanic Garden in Rio de Janeiro. That is… well only if you ignore the tourists next to him and the voice behind.

“Mirooooo, Miro… Miro!”

Miro turns back to his younger pair. Thomas is covered in sweat and has a rather obvious annoyed look on his face.

“I’m hungry.” He complains.

Miro can’t help but give in to a small chuckle. It’s not uncommon for Thomas’ stomach to ruin his mood.

“I told you to pack us lunch.” The elder calmly reminds him.

“I knoooow but I already told you I forgot and now I’m starving.”

“I figured you would, so I packed some extra food in case.”

Thomas stops at his words with an extremely shocked expression on his face.

“You _didn’t trust me_ to remember to pack food?”

Miro raises an eyebrow and next thing he knows, Thomas’ arms are around him.

“You know me so well. I love you so much.” He admits. “Now give me the food!”

They find a place to eat but since Miro isn’t really hungry, he takes a few steps while Thomas is eating. He takes a picture with his camera of the trees who form an aisle, of the fields, of everything he can possibly take. At one point he turns back and focuses on Thomas.

There’s something about his face Miro can’t help but adore, so he pulls the trigger. He looks so happy, as his usual self. Spontaneous pictures of Thomas are his favourite, even if he’ll never let him know.

 

“Miroooo”

“What is it now Thomas?”

“That fountain looks fun, don’t you want to go check it out?”

Miro’s attention turns to a statue surrounded by water. It’s actually beautiful sight. He snaps a picture of it without giving it a second thought. He turns his angle to the right and catches an old lady feeding some birds, what a nice image. He takes another capture and keeps turning until Thomas enters his line of sight once again.

Except Thomas has a smirk on his face. Miro quickly catches it on his camera and lowers it.

“I know that look very well, what are we up to?”

Not a word comes out from this mouth and next thing Miroslav knows, Thomas has both of his hands on the camera and pulls it off his neck next to their bags.

“What are you-“

But it’s too late; Thomas’ hands have already found their way to Miro’s chest pushing him over the edge. Miro falls back into the water of the fountain. He swallows a bit of water before managing to pull his head over the water. His confused look fades at the sight of Thomas laughing his ass off. He’s almost on the ground.

“It’s a warm day after all! You’re a lucky man!” He tries to say between his laughter. At least the fountain isn’t that deep; it’s shallow enough for Miro to sit up out of the water.

He rolls his eyes at the Bavarian and brushes his wet hair off, he is lucky indeed the sun is shining brighter, and Thomas is the lucky one as he is a grown mature adult who knows how to behave in a park.

 “Help me up,” he tells him.

Thomas, who has finally calmed down, gives him his hand. But to his own surprise, Miro pulls on it harder which ends with his body soaked in the fountain as well. Miro might be a grown mature adult but he still knows how to have fun.  They splash water at each other until both of them are laughing so hard they can’t breathe.

At one point, Miro decides to get up before security notices them and has the ‘german strikers soaking in fountain together’ headline out.

“I’m not done with you!” Thomas warns getting up as fast as possible without tripping. Miro turns to him with a raised eyebrow. Thomas leans in and gives him a small peck on his lips.

“Thomas!”

“No one is watching, you big paranoid.”

Miro turns around and to his surprise; no one is actually looking at their direction. He wants to kiss him back badly, but he’s very well aware this is neither the time nor the place.

After a moment to dry off, he picks up the camera next to his other bags and they continue walking. They stumble upon a beautiful Japanese garden.

“I thought we were in Brazil.” a confused Thomas remarks.

“It’s probably just a gift some Emperor gave Brazil back in the day.” Miro answers after snapping another picture of Thomas without him noticing, he always looks adorable with his confused puppy look and wet hair.

“It’s pretty isn’t it?”

Miro’s attention is still focused on the picture.

“Yeah, it really is beautiful.”

But he’s not talking about the garden.

 

After a while, Miro and Thomas take a break on a bench away from the crowd right next to the trees, walking around can really make you tired. Miro finally has taken off his camera and is eating, having skipped lunch earlier. He almost chokes on his piece of bread when he hears Thomas’ voice.

“What!? Since when do you take pictures of me? There’s one at the Japonese garden, at the lake, near the trees…again next to a tree. There’s even one of me eating! Miro!?”

Miro turns to Thomas with a shy smile and a shrug.

“You’re worse than a candid photographer!” Thomas teases him.

“I am your biggest fan, Müllie.”

Miro turns back to his food when he hears Thomas snap a picture.

“Now I have one of you.” He has a proud smile.

“Let me see that.”

“No!”

The Elder moves his hands towards the camera to Thomas’ reflex to pull it away. This earns a frown in Miro’s expression. He’s used to taking pictures of Thomas, rather not being taken. To his benefit, he knows Thomas a bit too well.

“Thomas, is that a horse?”

Thomas looks automatically behind. He can’t help it. He searches in the area where Miro was looking and it’s the perfect chance. He snatches the camera away from him, and clicks the option to look at the picture.

“I can’t believe you always fall for that one, I must have pranked you a hundred times.”

But there is no picture of Miroslav, instead, a picture of Thomas doing a funny face on the screen.

“Now you ruined the surprise party pooper.”

Miro laughs softly.

“Thomas Müller, you’re a unique man.”

Thomas huffs with a satisfied smile as he leans his head on Miro’s shoulder.

“I’m also your biggest fan, never forget that.”

 

* * *

(In the meantime)

 

Lukas was sure that making Louis brush his teeth and go to bed on an acceptable time of the night was something difficult. But trying to take Bastian away from Copacabana beach is proving to be even a harder task. After all, he really can’t blame his best friend for that.

Copacabana beach is wonderful; the sand feels so soft under your feet, the ocean is so inviting, the air so refreshing and the view is simply amazing.

He has enjoyed a lot taking a walk with Bastian along the shore, which ended with a regenerating swimming for them both. They’re Germans, so they’re more than used to cold temperatures.

Now they’re almost totally dry, thanks to the sunbathing session they’re having.

“Okay, Basti, I guess we’re done. It’s time for us to go away from here. It’s already four o’ clock and we must move to the zoo if we don’t want to be late.” The younger reminds  him.

“The hell with the zoo, I want to stay here!” Bastian lively protests.

“But… you had promised to me…” The brunet instantly pouts, disappointed.

“Well, maybe I’ve changed my mind again!” The older shrugs, placing his arms under his head in order to enjoy the sun better.

Lukas mutters something, rather annoyed, but then he sneers to himself.

He never surrenders so easily and he knows that he still has an ace up to his sleeve to resort to. Metaphorically speaking, of course.

It’s not that he’s wearing any sleeves, only boxers.

He pretends to lay down on the sun bed again, very quietly.

“Okay, as you wish, my dear. After all, why should we go to such a stupid and childish play like a zoo? It feels so damn good to be here…” He murmurs, closing his eyes.

“I’m glad you think so , too, honey. We’re so much alike!” Bastian beams, glancing at his boyfriend through his dark sunglasses.

\- Oh, we’ll see about it, my dear.- Lukas silently ponders, before setting his brilliant plan in action.

“Yeah, right. Besides, if we are very lucky, maybe we’ll get to see the little white shark some tourist saw yesterday.” The Pole adds, with nonchalance.

Bastian jolts in surprise, sitting up on his sun bed.

“The little… what?!” He asks for confirmation, very uptight.

“You heard me right, baby. I was chatting with a lifeguard before, while you were having the fifth bath of this afternoon… and he told me so. It wasn’t very big, only fifty centimeters, it was white and very cute… although he tried to bite one of the swimmers. But only a few scratches, those little teeth of the puppy still have to work properly, but it’s only a matter of little time!” Lukas kept his shrewd – and totally made-up– tale.

After all, he has played poker with Bastian so many times that he perfectly knows how to bluff with him.

And it’s working.

Lukas can tell it by the way Bastian’s pupils grow wider with fright and by the fact that he’s not uttering a single word.

Truth must be said. Bastian knows better: after watching ‘Jaws’ and all its sequels, he learned that beaches can turn into very dangerous places and that prudence is always the better thing.

After all, Lukas remembers very well the night of those terrifying movies marathon, recalling how Bastian hugged him tight, whimpering every time a shark attacked someone.

That’s why he’s not so amazed when he sees Basti dressing up and gathering all their things as fast as never before.

“C’mon, Poldi, let’s go the hell away from here!” He urges his boyfriend, almost yelling.

Lukas smiles to himself and follows him.

“Well, Schweini, we could go to the zoo, then. I know for sure that there’s no shark there.” The brunet innocently suggests.

“Fine, let’s go wherever is far from this damn beach!” The blond pleads.

* * *

“C’mon, Lukas, hurry up, there’s a million things we still have to see!” Bastian urges his partner, while he sips his milkshake from his zebra shaped plastic glass.

It surely matches with the baseball cap with elephant ears that he’s wearing. Lukas just confined himself to buying a giraffe stuffed animal for Louis, but he’s amused by his best friend’s excitement. 

And to think that Bastian didn’t even want to go there!

The Pole couldn’t be any happier.

“We still have to see those odd blue birds, then the panthers and then the…” The German goes on, but he sees something that makes him stop abruptly and forget the rest.

“Oh, Mein Gott! The lions! C’mon, Lukas, let’s go!” He runs towards the cages, hyper like a kid in a toy store.

A bit more quietly, Lukas reaches his partner and they stare at the cage of the lions.

 

It’s rather upsetting, because – as it happened with some of other animals there, too – the cages seem to be too small. So the poor lions don’t have a large space to enjoy and that makes them a little frustrated.

The two National German players manage to find a guard who speaks German and he assures them that the zoo staff is well aware of the current problematic situation and he explains that they’re intentioned to get better structures for all the animals they host.

“Good to know that.” The Pole smiles relieved.

“Hey, man, what about that puppy?” Bastian asks concerned, pointing to a lion cub in an isolated cage, who looks unquiet, stressed, scared and a little sad, too.

“Oh, he’s the newest arrival. Our group brought him here from South Africa three weeks ago. There’s a sad story about that poor puppy: a hunter killed his parents, but he managed to escape and hide in the forest… and then our guys captured him and brought him here, where he is much safer.”

“I bet he is, but why is he so isolated? Poor little thing.” Bastian wonders, even more concerned than before.

“Well, it’s because he’s still so recent, so he still doesn’t belong to the pack. That’s why the other male lions are hostile to him. Well, you know, sometimes we bring to his cage a female lion, because, you know, motherly attitude and stuff; but it’s still too dangerous to put him among the other males, until they don’t learn how to trust each other.” The guard explains.

 

Lukas’s and Bastian’s trip around the zoo goes on and they reach the bird areas.

“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” Lukas beams, bewitched by the sight of those beautiful multiple shades and colours of the birds’ feathers.

“Yeah, they’re amazing… but I’m still thinking about tha poor puppy lion…” Bastian groans.

“Me, too.” Lukas admits.

“Let’s hope that the other male lions start to get along with him soon.” The German asserts and then his glance falls on his watch. “Well, I guess it’s time to go back to the hotel, all the others will probably be there waiting for us. After all, we saw all we had to see here. Let’s go.” He suggests, while a very crazy and insane idea is crossing Lukas’ mind.

“You’re right, it’s getting late. But, please, go ahead. First I have to see if I manage to find another gift for my son.” The Pole says.

“You’re going to spoil that kid!” Bastian giggles.

\- Not the way I’m going to spoil a certain more grown-up kid! – Lukas ponders, as he walks away.

 

He manages to find the guard who told them about the lions earlier pretty soon.

“Hey, there you go again!” The Brazilian guy smiles. “Do you still want to know something more about the baby lion?”

“Huh, sort of. Let’s say that I do want to know stuff about him. But I’d also like to buy him!” Lukas reveals, getting ready to face the weird consequences.

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we blame this picture
> 
> for this idea on crack!  
> again i'd like to thank Lu for doing this because she's also a wonderful person :3
> 
> -Andrea


	4. Chapter IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now the crack officially begins!

"Excuse me...what... what did you just say?" The guard asks him, puzzled.

"Oh, c'mon, you were the first saying that the puppy is not safe here." Lukas makes him notice.

"Well, I guess he wouldn't be any safer with you either!" The other strikes back.

"What? It's not that I'm going to keep him with me like a domestic pet; once we're back home, we'll bring the lion to a zoo in Munich or in Berlin, which, no offense intended, are much better than this place!" Lukas explains.

"Oh, well, you're right, he'd stay better there for sure; this zoo is falling to pieces..." The older man grieves.

"Well, to begin with, to prove you my thankfulness, if you allow me to take the lion away I'm going to make a very generous donation to help you guys improve these structures." The Pole reveals.

"Oh, I'm speechless, Mr. Podolski..."

"So you do know me!" The younger grins proudly.

"Sure I do! You know, probably even without your offer I would accept. You know, of course, I root for Brazil because it's my nation and stuff, but out of the World Championship, I'm a huge fan of Arsenal! I never miss a match." The Brasilian confesses.

"Wow, really? Well, I'll make sure that also Per and Mesut pay a visit to you, then... and when we're back in England we'll send you our signed jerseys." The Pole offers.

"Oh my God, you're spoiling me, Mr. Podolski!"

"Just call me Lukas, buddy!" He winks at him. "Now, is there anything I need to know about the puppy lion? I mean, is he aggressive, dangerous or something?” The Pole wonders.

“What? Quite the contrary, he’s very quiet and pacific, as long as you provide his daily ration of meat, his milk with vitamins and stuff. I’ll give you some instructions about it.” The guard offers.

“Thanks. I’ll also do some google research, just in case. So… are you really accepting?” Lukas asks for confirmation, rather thrilled.

He didn’t think it would be that easy.

“Yes. To be honest, I guess this is the best thing that baby lion could wish for. I don’t think that the adult male lions here would ever accept him in their pack.” The man admits. “Let’s go take him, then. I should have some leashes in my office… and you’ll also need a little cage to carry him around, you know, like you do with dogs…or cats.” The Brazilian explains.

“Well, after all he’s somewhat a bigger cat!” Lukas giggles. “So does he already have a name?”

“We just call him ‘baby lion’!” The other shrugs.

“Okay, that’s better; it will be fun to pick a name for him!” Lukas grins, walking away with the man.

 

After about a quarter of an hour, Lukas is proudly carrying the little cage with a confused and a little scared lion cub inside, with also leashes and some baby bottles with his milk in a bag.

Bastian sees his mate coming from afar and rushes towards him.

“Luks! I was so worried! I thought you had got lost and then I came back there, but I couldn’t find you anywhere…” He rambles, very agitated, but then he stops. “Wait a moment. What are you holding?” He babbles, astonished.

“Not ‘what’, but rather ‘whom’! Say hello to our new puppy!” Lukas beams, showing him the cage better, before putting in on the ground.

Truth must be told: it’s not such a light weight to carry, after all.

“Meine Gott! Luuuks! Are you bloody nuts? How did you manage to steal this cub? Did anyone see you?” The German questions his lover, feeling the worst, while he shakes his boyfriend’s shoulders.

“Where do you think that I found this little cage? And all the stuff? Of course I didn’t steal him; I’ve regularly bought him. Okay, maybe not so regularly, but… whatever. I’ve convinced the guard to give him to us, so we can take him to a better place, like Berlin or Munich zoo!” He explains.

“Oh. And he gave him to you only because of that?” Bastian asks him, skeptic.

“Well, yes and no. That man did also for money and… because my lucky star made him a huge fan of Arsenal, so… you know, easy job!” He shrugs, making his boyfriend smile.

“You know, he also asked me that, in case we have to face Brazil, we can go soft, but I really don’t think I’m going to please him!” Lukas adds, laughing with his partner.

“So is it real? Can we really keep him?” Bastian beams, bending to the cage and turning to the lion.

“Hello, little thing! Don’t be afraid…” He speaks to the cub with a sweeter tone.

The little lion hesitantly gets closer and pushes a paw forward, trying to touch his hand.

“Oh, Luks, I think I already love him!” The midfielder murmurs, softened.

“I know, he’s so lovely! Alright, Basti, until we’ll take him to a German zoo, we’ll be his Mommy and Daddy!” Lukas cheers.

“I’m going to be the Daddy!” Bastian asserts.

“Why is it you the Daddy?” The Pole frowns.

“Because I said it first. _Mommy_!” The German sticks his tongue out at him.

“Whatever, now let’s think about all the stuff our baby needs.” Lukas suggests. “The bottles of milk will last only few days, we need a pet store!”

“Fine, we’ll ask the taxi driver if there’s one around, let’s go. I’ll hold the cage so you can rest!” Bastian offers, lifting the cage.

It takes several minutes and an extremely generous tip from Bastian to convince the driver to let them carry the lion in his car.

The same extremely generous offer Lukas has to resort to once they arrive to the pet store, to calm down the shoppers and assure them that yes, there’s a baby lion in the cage, but nope, he’s not dangerous.

Not even when the cub attempts a clumsy roar, gazing at their aquarium and staring intensely at the exotic fishes, his pupils growing larger.

“Noo, baby, that’s not the right food for you, but we’re going to buy you a lot!” Lukas patiently explains to the puppy, as if he could understand him.

Bastian draws the cub’s attention shaking a box of cat’s biscuits, while Lukas asks a shop assistant what kind of milk is suitable for such young lions.

For some reasons, the list of purchases become much longer than expected, because the two football players end up adding a relevant amount of balls, ropes, stuffed animal, a stick with a feather at the end of a thread, some pillows, a scratcher, some snacks and every sort of cat toy.

Satisfied, Bastian and Lukas head back to the taxi, bringing the lion and the shopping bags.

"I guess our baby won't miss anything!" Lukas grins.

"Yep, we just have to find some meat, but if we found none around, we can ask the hotel kitchen if they can sell us a couple of steaks." The other suggests. "By the way, are we supposed to call him 'baby' until he's a fully grown up lion or does he have a name?"

"Nope, that's the best part, let's find a pretty name for him!" The Pole smirks.

"Well, I'd like something related to football, like... World Cup!" The German suggests.

"No way, we can't call him World Cup!" Lukas protests.

"Why not? Maybe it will bring good luck, too!" The other insists.

"Maybe, but no, I prefer something less demanding, something like... Free-Kick!"

"Oh please, Free-Kick? Why not Penalty then?"

"Penalty. Uhmm..." Lukas ponders, caressing his chin with a thoughtful attitude.

"Geez, Poldi, I was just joking!" The German rolls his eyes.

"Maybe Referee or Linesman? The driver attempts to suggest.

"Eeeww! We'd never call our puppy like someone we end up cursing most of the time!"Lukas grimaces, horrified.

"Damn right! Besides, you're not bloody involved in that, keep doing your job which is just drive!" Bastian summons the man, a little annoyed.

The driver snorts but eventually obeys.

 

"Hey, Basti, what about Score?" Lukas asks him, after some minutes of silent pondering.

"I like it!" Bastian approves, grinning, before being sort of enlightened. "Why not Hat-trick, then? It's three times better! And it will bring good luck as well, maybe just like when we played against Portugal!"

"I've always said that you are a bloody genius!" Lukas cheers. "What do you think, Hat-trick? Do you like it?" He speaks into the cage he's holding on his lap.

His only answer, the cub gives out a purr, before laying down and closing his eyes.

After all, all those strong emotions and trips are tiring the little lion a lot.

"I take it as a yes." Bastian proudly beams.

 

“Do you think he’s cold?”

“I doubt it… He looks comfortable.”

The pair had taken all the towels from the bathroom, the cushions from the couches, a blanket from their bed (because Basti and Lukas needed one blanket at least for themselves), to make Hat-trick a wonderful place to sleep.

“I think we should wait to tell the team about him, or Jogi is bound to kick us out with him. I know exactly who would tell him.” Bastian nods. He doesn’t want Philipp ruining everything. He knows the small captain way too well.

Lukas agrees. He secretly can’t wait to take a selfie with him and upload it on Instagram with the rest of his pets.

“Let’s go grab a bite, we deserve it, I bet everyone is back from their day off, too!” He finally suggests.

Basti is about to agree when someone knocks the door. They both turn to Hat-trick in horror, the knocking might have woken him up. To their relief he’s still lost in sleep.

“BASTIAN! Open up!”

At his name, the German advances and opens the door. It’s no other than Manuel. Basti closes the door behind him leaving Lukas guarding their pet.

“What’s up?” He awkwardly says. Manuel misses completely his cold attitude.

“Something terrible has happened.”

Bastian closes the door a little bit more as Manuel goes on.

“I went out and my Nutella is gone, I think I left it in your room, because I remember asking Lukas important things, before Jogi called us in.”

“I’ll let him know.” Bastian smiles closing it completely. “What important things?”

“Uh, stuff… stuff too important for you! I’ll just ask him myself.” Manuel simply grabs his shoulders and pushes him aside. Bastian cursed having a 1.93 tall goalkeeper at the moment.

“Lukas!” Manu says as he enters, and he can catch Lukas closing the bathroom door quietly. Bastian’s heart rests. “Do you know where I left my Nutella?”

“Manuel Neuer, why on earth would I know where your Nutella is?” He replies, which a lower voice.

“Well don’t you remember? I was eating it when I asked you what you thought Philipp would like for his birthday. You even told me to relax considering his birthday is in November. And you ditched the idea about giving him 10 jars of Nutella, which honestly I find outrageous.”

“Important stuff.” Bastian nods with a smile from the back, with a low voice as well.

“Why are we whispering?” Manuel asks, confused.

Lukas thinks of something. “We’re paranoid Thomas put a camera in our room.” He lies. It’s not long until Bastian catches and continues.

“You know how twisted he is, he wants to spy on us so he’ll know when we’re planning a prank on him or on Miroslav, especially on Miroslav.”

“I guess Thomas is pretty protective of Miroslav.” Manuel agrees.

Bastian and Lukas share a look of despair. They don’t know what to do.

“I’ll just look around.” Manu whispers. He goes to the bed, then to the luggage bags. But when Manuel heads towards the bathroom door. Lukas stands in front of him.

“It’s not in there.”

“I need to scan every possible place Lukas.”

“You can’t.” Lukas speaks up a bit.                       

“Why?” Manu whispers.

“Bastian ate too much today at the Zoo, and he’s been in the bathroom ever since we got back. It’s gross.”

Bastian makes a face to his boyfriend before Manuel turns to confirm his story, to which his expression changes to one of a sick man.

“Gross.” Manuel adds, rather disgusted.

“If I see it I’ll let you know.” Lukas continues.

Manuel sighs, “Okay.” He starts walking as Bastian and Lukas are about to shout victory when Manu trips with a cushion they left on the floor. His entire body falls on his back making a big sound that echoes through the room.

Manuel sits up whimpering a bit. “Guys, you need to clean up a bit.” But Bastian and Lukas are looking at each other with a blank look on their face.

A high pitched cry comes from the bathroom. Bastian tries to hide it. “You were going.”

“What’s that?” Manuel suspects, noticing the pair’s weird behavior. The cry pierces the walls again and Manuel gets up towards it. “It sounds like some animal.”

Lukas tries to stop him, but it’s too late, when Manuel opens the door, a baby lion is on the floor, his stomach faced up.

He sees Manuel and opens his mouth, the high pitched sound coming out of it. The goalkeeper is speechless. The pair grab him and push him on the bed.

“Not a word to Lahm, you understand? Or we’ll make sure you never taste Nutella in your entire life again.” Bastian threatens.

“And… We’ll tell Jogi you… you…”

“Lukas, honey, let me do the intimidation.” Bastian turns to his boyfriend who blushes.

“You really scare me sometimes Basti.” He teases.

Manuel is still in shock as all he’s able to mutter is. “It’s cute.”

Bastian and Lukas start laughing. Maybe they overreacted with Manuel, he’s a soft hearted person after all. But their laughs vanish as soon as they hear the voice behind him.

“There you are! I found your Nut- **_What the hell!?_** ”

Bastian and Lukas turn in horror to the captain of the team with a jar of Nutella pointing at Hat-trick who tries to roar again, only to get the sound they hear earlier as a result.

“Schweinsteiger, Podolski, explain. NOW.” The short man demands.

“Isn’t it adorable? It’s as short you are!” Lukas starts earning a glare from Philipp. Bastian steps in.

“It’s a love present from Lukas my love, you wouldn’t take Hat-trick from us, would you?”

“I have no idea how you even found a baby cub…”

“It was quite easy actually!” Lukas adds before receiving a soft hit from Bastian to stop. Philipp stops, before starting again.

“This cannot be. It’s against the rules. I’m telling Jogi.” It’s just as Bastian suspected he would.

“Philipp is right, having a lion away from his mom is wrong.” Manuel jumps in.

“His family won’t accept him! We can be his family!” Bastian explains.

Lukas feels his heart fall. He had gone through all that trouble to make Bastian happy and now Philipp is going to take him away. Hat-trick has found his way to Philipp’s feet. He must be looking for heat, because he lays down at that point. 

“He won’t believe me if I don’t have proof though.” Philipp muses as he looks at the cub “roaring” on his feet. He bends and grabs him.

“What are you…”

“Manuel, quick!” He shouts as he turns around towards the door.

“Philipp Lahm!” Lukas jumps after him, followed by Bastian, but are stopped by Manuel, who guards the captain.

 

Philipp runs downstairs with the lion in his arms, knowing Lukas and Bastian will eventually overcome Manuel. He needs to find Jogi.

He walks through the reunion room and pretends to miss everyone who turn at him with a surprised look on his face. It’s funny how Brazil always manages to be warm. He continues until the house in the back. Lucky for him, Jogi is coming out at the moment Philipp arrives.

“Joachim!” Philipp shouts. The cub lets out its characteristic cry. Jogi’s expression changes from a confused one finding Philipp so upset to a surprised one as he stares at the small cat he’s holding.

“Bastian and Lukas brought it from their day off, it’s beyond madness. This is a beast. I know you’ll have a talk with them about this behavior.”

 

The pair arrive on their feet in a minute.

“Coach! Don’t listen to Philipp! He doesn’t mean it!” Lukas pleads, but it’s too late. The coach is already looking at the little creature with his eyes wide open.

Philipp grins as he lets Hat-trick on the ground. The little devil is heavy after all. Jogi gets on his knees as Philipp continues.

“We cannot keep an animal like this here.”

“This is… amazing” Joachim starts.

“Exactly! It’s.. wait what?” The captain stops, in shock.

“It’s beautiful. What’s his name?”

Bastian adds quickly. “Hat-trick, for luck.”

“That’s adorable.” A soft faced Joachim smiles. He lets his hand travel to the head of the cub. The baby purrs in pleasure and moves closer at him. “I absolutely approve of this as the team’s mascot. You have proven your worth to the team again, Bastian. We are German, as fierce as lions.”

Philipp cannot believe his eyes, neither can Bastian and Lukas actually.

“But it’s a lion!”  The short man mutters. “What will we bloody do when he starts eating us?”

“Hat-trick will only eat you, you mean person.” Lukas pouts.

“I’ve always loved the Lion King, and I’m quite the fan.” Jogi giggles.

Lukas smiles and hugs Bastian.

“I need a drink.” Philipp sighs as he turns around.

Hat-trick had passed the ultimate test and was definitely here to stay with the team.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We both hope you like this chapter! :-)   
> (I'm off school for the summer so we def will be updating more often)  
> Thank you for reading <3   
> -Andrea


	5. Chapter V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team gets to meet the little new pet... generating different reactions across the team!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lu and I want to apologize for being so extremely extreeeeeeeeeeemly late but we've both been really busy with well life and lack of inspiration bUT we're not giving up on this story so i hope you guys still enjoy reading it :))
> 
> -Andrea

“Mirooooooooo! See? We’re late!” Thomas complains, pointing at the row in front of them.

After the episode with Philipp, the news has spread like wildfire and Bastian and Lukas got             accustomed to the several visits from every mate of their team, at every time of the day… or even of the night.

“Can we see the puppy?” is the main question they keep hearing.

The news has gone even beyond the National Team. Miroslav and Thomas can clearly see both      Arjen and Dante, patiently waiting in the row, in order to see the baby lion.

“Well, Thomas, there are at least fourteen people before us; this means we’re going to waste a lot of time here, doing nothing. We could go back in our room and do something more productive, like re-watching the game and concentrate on all the mistakes we made…” the Pole suggests.

“No way! First, it’s nothing fun; second, if we leave now, maybe once we’re back we could have    even thirty people in front of us, it’s wiser not to lose our position here…” Thomas protests.

“Well, after all it’s only a baby lion, more like a big kitty… nothing so special…” Miro babbles.

“Yeah, sure… so why if it’s nothing special, did you take your camera with you?” The German narrows his eyes at him.

“Well...you were so eager to see the baby lion that you didn’t even give me the time to take off my  stuff!”  Miroslav promptly defends.

 

“I didn’t give you... what?! Once we were back from our trip, we ate strawberries, I watched two episodes of ‘The Simpsons’ in Portuguese... and I got the meaning only because I had already watched them at home... then we had a sexy shower together...so in which of all those moments you didn’t have time to get rid of your camera?” Thomas rambles.

 

“Uh, okay, you’re right, I took the camera here on purpose, because the baby lion is an extra special event and I need to immortalize every single instant!” the Pole confesses, before sliding closer to his mate. “However, we ate strawberry on each other’s belly and had a hot shower together... this makes me a funny man, after all.” he points out, making the younger smile.

“So, are you going to take a picture of me while I’m playing with the puppy?” He asks him, grinning.

“Only if you behave,” Miro strikes back. “Anyway, if I were you, I’d be very careful to approach the puppy...”

“Why?” the Bavarian frowns.

“Because it’s very well known that baby lions and baby wolves don’t get along much!” Miro makes fun of him, ruffling his hair, affectionately.

“Hey, Miro, that was a good one!” Mario chuckles behind them.

He and Marco are waiting to see the baby lion as well.

 

 “Huh! How long have you been listening to us?” Miro turns in his direction.

“Don’t worry, big man, we didn’t hear the dirty stuff!” Marco assures with a smirk.

The Pole sighs relieved, but it’s only temporary.

“Wait, this means that you did hear that!” he realises, deeply embarrassed.

“Well, it’s nothing that Miro and I should be ashamed of; also because there’s no way that you two can convince me that you spent the time in your room reading a book!” Thomas promptly strikes    back and this time it’s Mario and Marco who stare at the ground, awkwardly.

“So... do you want a pic of the lion, guys?” Miroslav offers, maybe in order to change topic.

“Yes, please, so maybe I’ll forget this upsetting day!” Mario states.

 

“What? Excuse me, I made you see the most wonderful sunset ever, we were immerged in nature, we saw so many monkeys… how can this day be upsetting?” Marco protests.

“Because we only saw the monkeys, you didn’t allow me to take away not even one!” the younger whines.

“If this can cheer you up somewhat, Miro didn’t want me to take away a couple of the beautiful, colourful feathers of the birds we saw! I mean, a stupid feather, not even the whole bird!” Thomas informs them, glaring at his boyfriend.

“But I did allow you to do that at the very end!” Miroslav makes him notice.

“Yeah, but only after asking _three_ different guards if it was possible to do that!” Thomas points out.

“Rules are everything, my dear!” the Pole states.

While they are so busy talking and quarrelling, Bastian’s and Lukas ‘door opens and Per and Jerome walk out, both with an ecstatic and bewitched look. Thomas is the first who notices them and approaches his friends.

“Hey guys, how is the puppy? Did you get to pet him a little bit?” he asks them.

“Aaaaaaaaawww, Tommy, it was worth it every second of this endless row, you just have to see him! He’s sooooooo cute, with his clumsy roars… the purrs… awwww!” Per informs him with a big grin.

“Yess.. and then he stretched and pressed his cutie paws on my foot and he cutely kept stamping on it and then he played with the laces ….oooooohhh he was so cute!” Jerome adds, beaming.

It’s not so ordinary to see such big and robust men acting like two little girls in love… sure, their teammates are sort of stunned by such a vision, but the most shocked one is for sure their Captain…who happens to walk in the corridor, in order to see how things are going.

“Okay… I suppose that I need another beer!” he grumbles, mostly to himself, before leaving.

Lukas takes advantage of that break to leave his room and reach the crowd who is still waiting.

“Okay people, I see that you are many more than I guessed, but don’t worry, there’s time for everyone. Just let me recap some rules, only two people at once are allowed to enter and, please, don’t stay there for more than ten minutes; but you all can come back again for another visit, okay?” The Pole commences.

“[Hey, Luks, are we allowed to take pictures?]” Miro asks him in Polish.

“[Yep, as long as you don’t use flash!]” the younger Pole replies in the same way.

“[Sure. You know, I preferred to secretly ask you, not to give anyone my same idea…]” the older justifies.

“[Wise choice!]” Lukas winks at him, before resuming the list of rules.

“Please, be polite with our puppy, don’t forget that he’s not a toy and, probably this is the most important thing, be quiet!” He pleads while he shortly glares at Thomas, before going back to his room.

“Hey! Why was Lukas staring at me when he said the last thing?” Thomas grumbles, insulted.

“No, Thom, he was just looking around, with no particular purpose…” Miro explains.

“Don’t insult my intelligence, Miro! He was staring JUST AT ME! As if he was hinting somewhat that I AM LOUD! ME? LOUD? Oh, c’mon, this is pure nonsense! I’m not loud, NEVER EVER!” the young Bavarian yells, while he gesticulates nervously.

“Yep, Müllie, you are never loud!” Miroslav sarcastically states, rolling his eyes.

“Damn right I’m not loud! HEY! Wait a minute… why did you speak in Polish with Lukas before?” Thomas recalls.

“Yeah, Miro, confess, were you trying to cheat and skip people who have been here long before you?” Ron-Robert accuses him, while Roman nods, narrowing his eyes.

“What? No way, it was only a technical info…” Miro rushes to point out.

“Oh please, guys, you can’t talk to Miroslav that way, he’s Mr. Fair-play! He would probably prefer to injure himself than to do something that could deceive one of us!” Marco promptly defends him.

“Thank you, my dear friend,” Miro smiles at him. “At least someone tried to defend me!” He grumbles, glaring at Thomas who shrugs.

“I don’t want to move a finger for someone who speaks with a secret language to hide something from me!” his boyfriend protests, insulted.

“Okay, now that I’ve played nice with you… can you find a way to make also Mario and me skip some people in the row?” Marco whispers to the Pole.

 

“What? For God’s sake, for the last time, I didn’t try to cheat in any, bloody way!” Miroslav snaps, losing his well-known big patience and it’s enough for everyone to believe his word.

“I still don’t get it why you had to switch to Polish… it’s like if Basti and I found our own secret language to tell each other things that you and Lukas can’t understand…” Thomas ponders, before being enlightened. “Hey… wait a minute…. We don’t need any secret language! We just have to talk Bavarian dialect!” He smiles to himself, pleased.

“Do whatever you want, Thomas!” Miro rolls his eyes.

 

* * *

 

 

Finally they turn arrives and as soon as they step in the room, Thomas loses every inch of dignity and rolls with his back on the floor, taking the baby lion in his arms and lifting him up and down. Hat-Trick tries to protest at the beginning, but then he happens to like that sort of relaxing push-up.

Even more important, Thomas proved to be very quiet while doing that, not screaming even once.

Miro decides to immortalize everything in a short video with his camera, but then he concentrates his attention on the baby lion only, taking tons of pictures of him.

“Geez, Miro, I suppose it wouldn’t make any difference if I wasn’t in the room!” Thomas grumbles.

“I know, baby, it’s not very polite from me, but… try to understand … he’s so impossibly cute while he licks his paws, or scratch is back… or stirs or clumsily roars or…” Miroslav justifies, unable to stop taking pictures.

“So what? I can do the same as well!” the youngest German insists.

“Geez, Müllie, you wouldn’t look even remotely cute, only very stupid!” Bastian strikes back and everyone laughs.

“Look the way Hat-Trick likes being framed in pictures; he has such a screen presence!” Lukas asserts with proud.

“Yeah, cameras are just the beginning. I can already picture him being the main star of a movie… maybe he’ll also have his own star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame!” Bastian already daydreams.

 

“No way, Basti, we’ll keep our baby far away from Hollywood and all its bad temptations!” his boyfriend protests, with motherly attitude.

“Hell yeah, I want my own star on the Walk of Fame, as the best striker… or even best horse-rider would suit!” Thomas rambles.

­­

“If it’s so, I want my own star as best prankster in the Football world!” Bastian asserts.

“Hey!” Lukas whines.

“Well, honey, I mean with you, of course. We could share half star together!” his boyfriend rushes to add.

“Geez, Hat-Trick, can you hear what they are babbling about? No wonder why I prefer taking pictures of you!” Miroslav grumbles with a low voice, shaking his head, while he goes on with his activity.

 

“I’m completely exhausted.” Lukas sighs the second his body hits the bed. Taking care of a puppy-lion is a lot more work than he had anticipated.

Bastian follows soon enough next to him. At least their beds are really comfortable enough for them to rest. He feels drowsy, and figures nothing will happen if they leave Hat-Trick alone for five minutes while they nap a bit. 

Crawling into Lukas’ arms, the midfielder whispers. “I’m glad you’re here with me.”

“I’m glad too,” He replies with a weak voice and they’re both gone to sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

“Are you sure you don’t want to move to Dortmund with me?” Mats lets out, in a seducing tone.

Benni stops from texting, a confused look on his face. “Really? You want to talk about this _now?”_

Mats places a hand against the wall, reducing the space between him in the wall with Benni in the middle. The blond man sighs softly, putting his phone away.

“I know it’s hard living so far..” His voice drifts and drops when Mats can’t stop smirking.

“What are you..?” He starts, but doesn’t finish, Mats’ lips are already on his. They’re standing in the the hallway, which can only mean a thing: vulnerable to endless Schweinski bullying if they spot them.

“Matsss” Benni starts, but the man has already found his key to the room on the back of his jeans. He watches him open the door while still having his attention on Benni. How he manages to do both is beyond him.

 

They stumble inside the room and recklessly leave the door open, being too preoccupied by each other to even notice. Mats lowers Benni against the bed, kissing him hard on the mouth. They’re all over each other, that they miss the gentle purr coming from the door. 

It’s not until Benni manages to take Mats’ shirt off and throws it on the ground that they realise they’re not alone.

A small whine breaks them apart, and Mats catches a small animal on the floor destroying his shirt.

“Whoa, there kitty.” He jumps to save but the small feline is faster, and has already torn it in half. He sighs, he really liked that shirt.

“What the hell is a _lion_ doing in our room?” A small voice comes from behind.

Mats turns to Benni with a raised eyebrow. Has he really not heard about Lukas and Bastian’s adventure?

“Lukas and Bastian, came back from the zoo with it…. Are you okay?”

Benedikt is white as a sheet, and Mats had missed how he had snuck all the way up to the pillows. He shakes his head.

“He should go back to the zoo, he doesn’t- ”

He jumps when the small lion finishes ripping Mats’ shirt and rushes to him. With his two back legs, he finds the strength to clash against Mats’ legs.

“Are you okay?”  Benedikt worriedly asks, Mats on the other hand is simply trying to put down the animal.

“Are you scared of lions, Benni?”

“Whatever gave you that idea?” A sarcastic tone snaps back, earning Mats a laugh.

“He wont hurt us he’s just a little baby.” Mats reassures him with a glance, but the Schalke man is not convinced. Thankfully though, Mats has found a way to make the small lion interested in his shirt again.

He takes a step from the pillows and finally manages to stand next to Mats. From this distance the animal doesn’t seem so dangerous he figures it’s even a bit cu-

“Roaar!” It’s enough from the baby to send Benni on top of Mats, breaking his balance. The man trips, trying not to let his boyfriend touch the ground. It’s a hard job, but he manages. Benni is holding on to his neck and Mats has him between his arms. He thinks he’s calmed down when the lion who seems to think it’s some kind of game, also jumps on him.

Between Benni’s not-so-discret screams and the small lions’ attempt to play, Mats doesn’t know what’s worse. He tries to yell and tell them both to calm down, but he catches Bastian and Lukas at the door before he can even say a word.

 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing to our baby?!” Bastian yells.

“He’s attacking us!” Benni, still caught in Mats’ arms, accuses. “You’re trying to get us killed with this little devil! 

“Hat-Trick, come here.” Lukas tries, but the lion is too preoccupied by Mats and Benni, and pushes them hard enough to send them both down.

Benedikt opens his eyes and looks around expecting the worse, but to his relief, the two tricksters have already caught their beast.

 

“What on earth were you thinking?” He asks, in a very annoyed tone.

“He’s adorable,” Lukas defends, and turning back to his small creature. “Don’t listen to the mean old man, you’re an amazing pet, Hat-Trick.”

“You named it Hat-trick?” Mats lets out,

“It’s a good luck charm.”

 

Benedikt shakes his head. “I’m going to tell Jogi about this.” But when Bastian and Lukas both shrug, he knows that it isn’t going to work.

“He knows already doesn’t he..”

“And he’s in love with him.” Lukas finishes. “Anyway, we’ll be on our way."

“Take better care of him,” Mats suggests. He doesn’t mind the company of the feline, but he hates seeing Benni like this.

 

But the pair ignore him, and close the door behind them.

“I believe we were in the middle of something” Mats begins, but when he spots Benni turning on the TV and pouting, figures he needs to comfort his lover.

“He’s gone now, don’t worry.”

Benni nods, and rests his head against his chest.

* * *

 

Thomas is the first one to knock on Bastian and Lukas’ room the next morning. He snuck out of bed before everyone else hoping to get just one more cuddle with the lion and avoiding the huge line.

Basti opens the door and his hair is a mess, ignoring it, Thomas starts.

“Can I pet Hat-Trick?” His grin is wide, and the older man can’t believe what he’s hearing.

“Thomas it’s-“

“6:00 AM, yes.”

“It’s early.” Stating the obvious. 

“So can I pet him?”

Bastian gives in hoping that if the Bavarian pets him, he’ll go away sooner. Thomas satisfyingly walks in and starts looking around.

“Uh, Basti, where is it?”

“Are you blind? He’s sleeping.”

“Where does he sleep?”

The man rolls his eyes. It’s far too early for this. “In his bed.”

 

By the time Bastian has reached Thomas he notices he’s right. The animal is missing from his bed. 

“Lukas?” He starts, suddenly awake. He hears a mumbled reply coming from the bed. 

“Is Hat-Trick with you?”

“Noo.“ 

“The door was locked, he couldn’t have opened it like last night!” Bastian panics.

“Where was he last night?” Thomas is missing the point.

“After everyone left, Lukas and I accidentally fell asleep and left the door open. He wandered and found Benedikt and Mats, but now, I had the door locked! I checked!”

“Do still have your card?”

Bastian scrambles around the place and horror fills his face. Lukas has managed to get out of bed, joining the terror.

 

“What’s all the fuss about?” He asks, in a sleepy voice. 

“Someone has kidnapped our baby!”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is a story we both started planning out of a random idea and well here it is..  
> if you think this is the crack part of the story, just wait and be impressed. 
> 
> ALSO TOMORROW (today for some people around the globe) IT'S [ LU'S ](http://archiveofourown.org/users/ThunderFrost2012)BIRTHDAY *go tell her happy birthday* and yesterday was my birthday we thought it'd be nice to post it in between
> 
> We hope you enjoy this and expect more crack in the upcoming chapters!  
> -andreaofuerte


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